ZURICH: FIFA said on Wednesday it had fired General Secretary Jerome Valcke, once one of the global soccer body's most powerful figures, amid alleged corruption involving World Cup ticket sales.

"The FIFA Emergency Committee decided, on 9 January 2016, to dismiss Jerome Valcke from the position of FIFA Secretary General with immediate effect," Zurich-based FIFA said in a statement.

Last week FIFA's ethics judges announced they had opened formal proceedings against Valcke, who had already been suspended by the soccer body's ethics watchdog. Valcke has denied wrongdoing in the past.